Rehearsal of Chang’e-5 lunar mission conducted in China

Chang’e-5: China’s maiden sample return mission to the moon that is currently under development.

Chang’e-5 was in news on 21 September 2015 as China shipped Long March-5 carrier rocket from Tianjin port for a rehearsal of Chang’e-5 lunar mission.

It was the first drill carried out in a launch site that involved both the carrier rocket and a probe.

Chang’e-5 is the first of its technology for China as it will be involved in automatic sampling, an unmanned docking 400000 km above the lunar surface and ascending from the moon without a launch site.

Features of Chang’e-5 lunar mission

• It is China’s maiden sample return mission to the moon.
• It was named after the Chinese moon goddess Chang'e.
• It is called as a sample return mission as it will return the Earth with at least 2 kilograms of lunar soil and rock samples.
• It is currently under development and is expected to land on the Moon by 2017.
• It consists of Long March 5 rocket that will be used to launch the probe.
• Long March 5’s first trial flight is expected to take place in 2016.
• The rocket will carry 14 tonnes of payload to geostationary transfer orbit, the largest carrying capacity in China.

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